Risk of Becoming Homeless - Case Study Example

POVERTY Problem Poverty is an important social problem to address and try to solve. Political ideologies differ, but in most countries, there is a large gap between the rich and the poor, and those who live in poverty have difficulty meeting even their basic needs. Therefore, the solution is to help those who are impoverished. There are many people with income problems, but the population which this current investigation focuses upon is the population of the homeless. There are different definitions of who is actually homeless and who is at risk of becoming homeless. This makes an exploration of this idea complicated by the idea of the life of the person at immanent risk of homelessness as something that is expressive of the perspective of those who define them, and therefore may, wittingly or not, make class-struggle dynamics more a part of the equation than a lot of people may realize. That is, to define those who are at risk and be so explicitly brought down by them, or rather by those who oppress them, suggests a position that is far from an objective experience of the actual life of the homeless, who may or may not be aware of the rituals of definition which make their experience so singularly bitter. From this perspective, the poverty of the individual seems like more of a forced choice than a willing obligation. To avoid confusion, then, those who are immanently homeless still have their basic needs met, which are shelter food and water and clothes. But those who are homeless are beginning to lose these basic needs and lose touch with the society that provides them. This is the main difference in terms of the distinctions of immanent and real homelessness. This sets up a classification system of the poor and homeless, so that it is at least clear exactly about whom someone is speaking when they name the actual and immanent homeless. The definitions which can be provided in terms of this difference are largely classical and do not have the same attenuation that is placed in other sections of experience on modern equivalencies of the welfare state as it exists today; nonetheless, perhaps the classical definitional structure of immanence versus actuality in referring to the poor and homeless is made more clear by its presentation as a set of unchanging categories that includes the poor, the almost-homeless, and the homeless. It seems that this set of categories could be expanded, and that we could expand this definition by adding that although these are specific categories into which the poor and homeless can be placed, a more general definition concentrates on three factors. These factors are poverty, or the lack of economic or financial sufficiency to meet the daily needs of living and survival; powerlessness, in terms of the relationship to the oppressive powers which make life so bitter to them, and exclusion, which defines the boundaries of the poor as being alienated from a certain presentation of society or knowledge that could be beneficial to them History The problem of homelessness, generally, can be aligned with the parallel problem of poverty as it affects individuals in society, regardless of their age, gender, ethnic background, etc. Although minorities still tend to be over-represented in terms of poverty conditions, this is a problem that was worse in the past, and currently is bigger than simple categorical and demographic divisions, and it is a problem that is basically economic and cyclical in nature. Poverty has been a problem that has been linked to increasing urbanization historically. When the problems of poverty are combined with the problems of urbanization and the lack of available services in many cases, such as affordable housing initiatives and care and support systems integrated into the social work fabric, the result is an increase in psychological problems in the clients who need to be helped, because they are being forced into homelessness as a result. “The key question for policy makers and the public at large is what types of changes in healthcare delivery could happen and would these changes be acceptable? For this reason, policy makers should focus on the effect of government controls on the delivery of healthcare services before they embrace one concept or another” (Primary, 2007). People separate income problems into absolute and relative terms. The focus of many programs that have sought to help the homeless historically, is on the relative income problems, which are seen to be perhaps more mutable and changeable than the situation experienced by those with absolute income problems, who may be homeless or destitute. Basically, the difference between relative and absolute income problems that have been addressed in the program historically lies in the fact that those individuals with relative income problems can provide for basic survival, but have trouble with shifts in income and lack of security. The issue of immigration also comes up in terms of access, because these communities are often hit hard by poverty and are also isolated from access to healthcare Proposal I would recommend that the constituency will develop a program that will meet the two different kinds of income problems that can plague an individual. These categories separate income problems into absolute and relative terms. The focus of the program should be on the relative income problems, which as noted, are seen to be perhaps more mutable and changeable than the situation experienced by those with absolute income problems, who may be homeless or destitute. Basically, the difference between relative and absolute income problems that should be addressed in the effective program to end homelessness lies in the fact that those individuals with relative income problems can provide for basic survival, but have trouble with shifts in income and lack of security. This is therefore more of a preventative type program than a solution to homelessness. The program should seek to meet the needs of people with absolute income problems and provide them with basic needs such as food, clothes and a place to stay. It should also address issues of income stability and social factors that may be leading to a destructive cycle of poverty. The constituency should suggest a staffed outreach team being housed at a central location, which reaches out to the homeless in the area to bring their services to people on the street level. From there they can provide assistance in the form of food and clothing and help their clients access services: entitlements, medical and psychiatric care, substance abuse treatment, and opportunities to stay indoors at the central location and receive shelter there. This central location of the program that the outreach is coming from should also serve as a program base and treatment center where people will have access to mental and physical health care, rehab, and referral to housing opportunities. This program should be presented to both local healthcare organizations and various federal grant applications for approval. The local healthcare organization should be approached to provide the central location or facility mentioned above for both the outreach program and the provision program for the homeless. The government should provide the money factor in the form of support grants involving the planning and development of new service delivery sites in high poverty counties. The healthcare facility itself should be approached directly by the team of constituents and given proposals in a bureaucratic way as well as through face to face communication and advocacy on the premises. In the conditions of modern society, this chronic stress is seen throughout relationships between people, especially in low income or ghettoized areas, because they have to struggle to get by in the face of encroaching poverty. This is also made clear in the external society by the examinations of the typical poverty-stricken family in this area. “Suffice it to say that as a chronic stressor, poverty contributes to distress in the form of economic hardships, poor accessibility to health care, limited resources, feelings of powerlessness, and low educational achievement” (Anderson, 1991). The society under regard also shows vestiges of Anderson’s other stated types of stress, Level II and Level III stress. In the case of the former, major life events such as poverty conditions disconnect with the society form stress in the lives of individuals. And Level III stress is perhaps best shown in the typical financially stressed individual who undergoes many daily stressors and winds up being easily triggered by the misbehavior of others. This leads to a cycle of problems which could include clinical depression. “Evidence from studies on all racial groups does suggest that depression is linked to the experience of life events but factors such as the predictability, controllability, and desirability of the event moderate the effect of depression” (Anderson, 1991). Homelessness problems as they exist among the population, generally, can be aligned with the parallel problem of poverty as it affects individuals in society, regardless of their age, gender, ethnic background, etc. The root cause may be difficult to see, but many contest that it is poverty or financial deprivation. Poverty has been a problem that has been linked to increasing urbanization historically, but existed extensively even before the industrial revolution. And along with poverty comes the issue of homelessness or the issue of individuals who have been driven from the normal codes of society and psychology in terms of dwelling and existing harmoniously in social systems, and are reliant on shelter systems supplied by the state, and the code of the streets. And many of these forms of distress have been linked as extraneous and direct variables affecting psychological functioning in individuals. In terms of hidden populations, it is always difficult for census and other authority figures to get accurate demographic and population information regarding homeless people, because they tend to be very transient and may be using multiple names, or may not have the faculties to successfully participate in polling. The same can be said to a lesser extent of other populations, which may be representative of other hidden populations that are not accurately represented in existing census figures. Professionals need to work to achieve solving the problem of homeless in society. In the engagement process, the client makes a decision about whether to trust the person who is trying to help them. If they trust them, communication is facilitated and trust is established. If they do not trust them, there may be significant barriers put up to positive communication. Sometimes trust with a homeless person is immediate, and at other times it has to be earned. Anderson separates stress into three levels in his text. In the first level, the stress is chronic and environmental, and it is a stress that stays with people throughout their lives. Solutions are then based on these causes, such as solutions based on Medicaid and Medicare accessibility, the cycle of poverty, and attention to the local level in examining the problems of the homeless in local cities, as well as specific homeless populations such as the elderly homeless or the homeless with disabilities. Looking at the causes also means being able to assess what is being done concretely, rather than theoretically, to deal with specific problems facing the homeless, such as depression, drug use, and dementia. It is also important, however, to focus on statistical and theoretical presentations of the problem to provide a varied scope of inquiry, and to be able to relate these presentations in the form of workable references to extant literature on the subject of the causes of homelessness. Since this is not really available now, however, personal recommendations regarding solutions to this problem have to also be presented, as well as the impact of the culled knowledge on societal values in terms of how people relate to the homeless and common perceptions of the fact that they can’t get jobs, have mental issues, etc. Conclusion Poverty and homelessness are considered in various ways in the literature. “A limitation is that studies that have used material hardship measures have generally focused on only one type of hardship; however, examining multiple dimensions of hardship allows us to understand how each form may be associated with income poverty and child health” (Ashiabi and O’Neal, 2007). I would argue that the multiple dimensions of hardship that the authors have chosen are just the tip of the iceberg. I did pay enough attention to the explanation of poverty and material deprivation in the report. This explanation focuses on lack of food, housing, medical care, and other basic essentials of human need that are not met in the poverty situation. More advanced studies use a poverty index to measure increases in low-income individuals and families. Using this explanation, authors have tried to come up with a solution that approaches poverty from a statistical level of meeting people’s basic human needs. Researchers have found that among the homeless, single mothers are perhaps the most important area of focus, and that, in terms of links to poverty, “Family income matters for understanding child health, because we found that after adjusting for controls and other predictors, income poverty had an independent effect on child health status… material hardship is a multi dimensional construct” (Ashiabi and O’Neal, 2007,). Overall, I would like to see more of these dimensions explained in terms of real world context. Also, in programs specifically, “Even as home prices and interest rates have dropped over the past year and the income needed to purchase a median-priced home has dropped in 93 percent of the 208 homeownership markets studied between 2008 and 2009, many workers are still unable to buy a median-priced home” (Homeless, 2010) It is important to know the causes to trace attempts at solutions, but it is also important not to concentrate so much on causes that one is not concentrating on solving the problem. Homelessness is not just one holistic problem, but a problem made up of many different faces, circumstances, and occurrences. Therefore, a solution cannot be holistic or singular, but instead must take into account the many variables and circumstances which make a person homeless. REFERENCE Ashiabi, G and K O’Neal (2007). Children’s health status. California State University East Bay. Nayowith, S. (2000). Social workers make a difference in the lives of the homeless. http://www.naswnyc.org/w20.html Homeless NJ (2010). http://www.hud.gov/local/index.cfm?state=nj&topic=homeless Primary Care Access (2007). http://www.ihi.org/IHI/Topics/OfficePractices/Access/HowToImprove/ Read More